I have been riding the streets of metropolitan Los Angeles for decades. I love to explore neighborhoods I’ve never visited and ride on roads I’ve never seen. Even taking into account how large Los Angeles is, as time goes by, understandably, that gets more and more difficult. I’ve been up and down all the major streets—they have freeway off-ramps—and the secondary streets between them. Every single time I ride somewhere new, it’s rewarding.
When the press guys at LiveWire took me out for a short ride and some photos on the new S2 Alpinista electric sportbike, I didn’t have high expectations. We were heading out of Bartels’ Harley-Davidson in Marina del Rey, and I am intimately familiar with everything in that area—even the dead-end streets.
We headed east—you don’t have to go too far west to end up in the Pacific Ocean. We worked our way to the San Diego Freeway on Washington Boulevard and into Culver City, snapping bike-to-bike photos on the run. The LiveWire S2 Alpinista is definitely the right bike for that sort of fun.
Detouring for a moment, riding from one end of Washington Boulevard to the other is a great experience, especially if you aren’t familiar with Los Angeles. Starting at the west end, it takes you from Venice Beach along the southern border of downtown Los Angeles, through some impressive industrial areas, and into the southern reaches of the San Gabriel Valley. Eventually, it ends at Whittier Boulevard in Whittier. Music fans will recognize Whittier Boulevard from a Chicano rock classic instrumental from 60 years ago by Thee Midniters, even if they’ve never been on it.
Okay, so back to Washington Boulevard in Culver City. We went past Sony Pictures Studios, where I worked in the 1990s—fun memories there, for a while. Fortunately, I escaped and ended up at Hi-Torque Publications, working for ATV Action magazine—a huge step up.
A right turn on unremarkable Duquesne Avenue confused me a bit. “Where are we going?” I wondered. We crossed Ballona Creek and arrived at Jefferson Boulevard. We turned left, riding through an industrial area and doing some time-saving lane-splitting in the heavy traffic. Then, at an intersection that looks like not much more than a driveway, we took a right turn at Hetzler Road. Huh?
Well, the road starts to climb, twisting its way into the Baldwin Hills—but not a part of the Baldwin Hills that I’ve been to, and I thought I had seen it all.
It is only a half-mile from Jefferson Boulevard to the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook parking lot, but what a difference a half-mile makes. The view from the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook is absolutely unbelievable—one of the best in Los Angeles. I kept shaking my head. “How did I not know this was here?” It didn’t hurt that it was a haze- and smog-free day.
Hetzler Road accomplished multiple tasks. It provided opportunities for cornering shots with a stunning background, along with testing for acceleration, braking, and cornering. And it did it all in a half-mile.
The lesson I learned was to let others lead rides. Because of my wide-ranging knowledge of LA-area roads, I inevitably end up the leader on urban group rides. However, there are gems out there that I still haven’t unearthed, so it’s a reminder to give up the reins now and then.
